Gosar, Nev. cohort team up on issues affecting region

BULLHEAD CITY — BULLHEAD CITY The stucco housing developments that stretch into the empty desert here on the Arizona side of the Colorado River are home to many who work straight across at Laughlin's casino towers on the Nevada side.

The twin cities' economies are so closely linked that they both suffered from the downturn in tourism and gambling in recent years, as vacationers and retirees cut back sharply on their discretionary spending.

So finding ways to boost these economies became a hot topic at joint town halls this week held by Republican congressmen representing both sides of the river.

U.S. Rep. Paul Gosar, of Arizona, and Rep. Joe Heck, of Nevada, said they are working hand in hand to secure funding for a second bridge to connect the cities and drive commerce. They are pushing for a crucial transportation link that would become Interstate 11 between Phoenix and Las Vegas, the only major cities in the United States that lack a direct interstate connection. And along with other members of Congress, they recently stopped the Federal Aviation Administration from closing the local airport control tower as a result of budget cuts.

Though Gosar supported the budget cuts, known as sequestration, he said the FAA needed to find other ways to cut spending than closing towers.

The congressmen were visiting among the hardiest GOP strongholds in their states.

"Even the sky is red in Mohave County," joked Mohave County Republican Party board member Michelle Arnett, after the meeting of about 50 people at Bullhead City Hall.

Audience questions on gun control, immigration and Arizona's Medicaid expansion reflected the area's political bent, though some appeared to be based on conspiracy theories, which the congressmen explained were debunked. Gosar drew applause by criticizing President Barack Obama's use of executive orders, pledging to fully investigate the attack on the U.S. Embassy in Benghazi, Libya, and calling for the Republican Party to regroup and win more elections in 2014.

Summing up the failure of a bill in the Senate last month to expand background checks for gun purchases, which Gosar opposed, he said, "The Constitution won."

Gosar and Heck, who were swept into office on the "tea party" wave of 2010, promised to continue their partnership in this second term.

"We've got a lot of things in common. We both were in health care. We're both small-business owners. … We represent states with a lot of land but not many people," Heck, a physician, said, referencing Gosar's career as a dentist. "We realized that we share this common border. ? We should be doing things that will benefit both sides of the river."

Bullhead City residents afterwards said the town hall and Gosar's visits to a dinner and ribbon-cutting in recent days were more than they had seen of past representatives. Given the brutal Republican primary Gosar went through last year, they said, he was the right person to be elected.

"When you can see your congressman proactively involved in issues of concern to the constituents, it gives you some hope," said Dave Gaines, 66. "It kind of lends an argument to term limits, too. That these two young guys could come in and hit the ground running and get things done."

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